The festival dates back to the 18th century, and the influx of French Catholic planters – both white and free coloured – their slaves, and free blacks in the 1780s. The white and free coloured both staged elaborate masquerade balls at Christmas and as a “farewell to the flesh” before the Catholic Lenten season, with each group mimicking the other in their masking and entertainment. The West African slaves of these planters as well as free coloureds had their own masking traditions, and held festivities around the burning and harvesting of the sugar cane (this was known as cannes bruleés, anglicised as Canboulay or Camboulay). For each group, masks and mimicry were an essential part of the ritual.

After the emancipation of slaves in 1838, Canboulay became a symbol of freedom and defiance. In response, the British colonial government outlawed drumming, stickfighting, masquerading, African-derived religions (like those of the Orisa faith and the Spiritual Shouter Baptists or Shango Baptists), and even tried to suppress the steel pan – but was never able to stamp out what has become a hallmark of Trinidadian identity.

This masking and mimicry merged over time with the calinda – or stick fighting accompanied by chanting and drumming – and rituals of Canboulay to become a jamette – or underclass – masquerade. After many a battle with the British colonial government, who kept trying to ban drumming, masquerade, and even the steel pan – the festival eventually found a home on the Monday and Tuesday before Lent, and was adopted as a symbol of Trinidadian culture during the independence movement. Here is a clip of the Canboulay Riots Re-enactment which happens each year in Port of Spain, Characters from the earliest Carnival include the pis-en-lit, who walks around in a nightgown waving a chamber pot, and the Dame Lorraine, a man in a dress with enormously stuffed bosom and bottom.

MAS PIONEERSTrinidad Carnival is many things – music, colour, movement; but above all, it is the spectacle of the masquerade. Thousands of costumed revellers transform the landscape into a visual fantasia. But for those individuals whose imagination, craft and passion created legends, the decades following World War II were a golden age for costume design. Some of the most influential names in costume design include: TRADITIONAL CARNIVAL CHARACTERS

The stories behind the traditional Carnival characters lend meaning and significance to these unusual portrayals. Often an individual plays one specific persona year after year and is familiar with the traditions associated with that role. The custom is usually passed on orally to family members or other interested persons. According to Elma Reyes, some of these portrayals were performed as “mas' for money“ (16). The masqueraders would offer entertainment in the form of humour, songs or skits in exchange for money. In some cases threats and scare tactics were used to coerce bystanders into giving them cash. Some of the best known characters are as follows:

BABY DOLLThe baby doll character was portrayed mainly in the 1930's, but is still seen every year at Ole Mas competitions. The masquerader portrays a gaily dressed woman, decked out in a frilled dress and bonnet. In her arms she carries a doll which symbolises an illegitimate baby. The masquerader usually stops male passers-by and accuses them of being the baby's father. She would then demand money to buy milk for the baby. This character was sometimes portrayed by a man who would speak in a high-pitched voice. BATS

The bat costume is normally black or brown and fitted tightly over the masquerader's body. The headpiece covers the head entirely, with the player being able to see through the mouth, or lifting it up to his forehead. It is made of swansdown with papier-maché face, teeth, nose and eyes. Leather shoes with metal claws for toes are normally used. Ordinary shoes can also be adapted by attaching of long socks,...

YOU MAY ALSO FIND THESE DOCUMENTS HELPFUL

...Literature; so much depends upon it
Literature represents a language or a people: culture and tradition. But, literature is more important than just a historical or cultural writing. Literature introduces us to new worlds of experience. We learn from books and literature; we enjoy the triumphs and the tragedies of poems, stories, and plays; and we may even grow through our literary journey with books. In conclusion, we may...

...Ecocriticism is the study of literature and environment from an interdisciplinary point of view where all sciences come together to analyze the environment and brainstorm possible solutions for the correction of the contemporary environmental situation. Ecocriticism was officially heralded by the publication of two seminal works,[citation needed] both published in the mid-1990s: The Ecocriticism Reader, edited by Cheryll Glotfelty and Harold Fromm, and The Environmental...

...LiteratureLiterature (from Latin litteraetantri (plural); letter) is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources (although, under circumstances unpublished sources can be exempt). Literally translated, the word literature means "acquaintance with letters" (as in the "arts and letters"). The two major classification of literature are poetry and prose.
"Literature" is sometimes differentiated from...

...What is Literature?
Language Department
IPGK Pendidikan Teknik
Based on your experience learning
literature, what is literature? What
are the characteristics of literature?
Do you need to learn literature?
• Traditionally,
literature is
“imaginative”
writing.
• However, the
distinction between
“real” and “fake” or
“fact” and “fiction”
isn’t always a good
distinction; many
classical...

...British Literature
09/07/2014
Art, Literature, and the Carriers of Civilization.
In 1848, Thomas de Quincey wrote an essay titled “The Literature of Knowledge and the Literature of Power.” De Quincey was a 19th century British author. He is well known for “Confessions of an English Opium Eater.” In his essay, he divides literature – books to be precise, into two separate roles: the literature of knowledge...

...﻿
Course Activity Semester A
Discussing Literature and Government
This activity will help you meet these educational goals:
Common Core State Standards—You will initiate and participate effectively in a collaborative discussion (SL.1).
Introduction
In this course activity, you will participate in a peer discussion about how literary or other artistic pursuits and governmental, religious, political, or social structures affect one another. Afterward, you will summarize the...

...Caribbean Literature
INTRODUCTION
The evolution of Caribbean Literature started centuries before the Europeans graced these shores and continues to develop today. Quite noticeably, it developed in a manner which transcended all language barriers and cultures. Today the languages of the Caribbean are rooted in that of the colonial powers - France, Britain, Spain and Holland - whose historical encounters are quite evident throughout the region. The cosmopolitan...

...-------------------------------------------------
A Brief History of Philippine Literature in English
I. Pre-Colonial Period
- Consisted of early Filipino literature passed down orally; oral pieces have a communal authorship – it was difficult to trace the original author of the piece since oral literature did not focus on ownership or copyright, rather on the act of storytelling itself;
- Many oral...